Filling up a fuel tank on a small boat, personal watercraft or other watercraft can be difficult, potentially dangerous in rough water, and often results in damaging fuel spills. This is because the watercraft is typically floating and rocking on the water and, for small vessels, the fuel tank opening is usually located at or below the level of the dock where the operator can safely walk and stand. This makes it inconvenient and often quite difficult and potentially dangerous to fill the tank while standing or kneeling on the dock, especially in rough water and high waves caused by boat wakes. When onboard the vessel or next to it on the dock, it is physically demanding on the arms and back to stand and hold a hand-held gas can and try to pour the fuel directly into the tank opening.
The difficulty with easy and quick refuelling of small vessels, such as personal watercraft and small motor boats, is particularly acute on lakes which have no marina to supply a ready source of fuel. Most small lakes scattered throughout North America, which allow motorized crafts, do not have marinas therefore there is no choice but to bring fuel from land based stations. On larger lakes with marinas, taking the watercraft to a marina for fuelling can be very time consuming and many marinas experience long lines during peak times, when the boat owners would much prefer to be out on the water rather than traveling to the marina and waiting to fill up the fuel tank. In addition, fuel at land based gas stations is typically less expensive than at marinas. These factors provide strong incentives for filling up the watercraft's fuel tank with gas purchased at a land-based station. Nevertheless, the difficulties experienced with fuelling the watercraft from a hand-held fuel can still inhibit many boaters from fuelling the watercraft in this manner. In fact, without some type of device to help deliver the fuel from a hand-held fuel can or other suitable container into the fuel tank on the watercraft in a clean and safe manner, many boaters elect to use the marina despite the associated drawbacks. And many small boat and personal watercraft owners who have tried to fill their watercraft with a hand-held fuel can have stories of being swamped, knocked about or even overboard, and spilling fuel while trying to fill the tank.
One product known as the DuraMax® has been developed in an attempt to solve this problem. This particular device includes a fuel holding tank that typically holds about 14 gallons of fuel and includes a hose to deliver the fuel from the holding tank to the watercraft. There are two shut-off valves, at both the tank and hose connector, to disconnect the pump for refilling and transportation. This product, however, is not suitable for many potential users because it is relatively expensive and difficult to use because it is quite heavy for an individual to handle when full and is very slow and time consuming. Because the device is too large to fit into many passenger vehicles and so heavy when full, it generally requires a truck, trailer or some other gear to help transport the device back and forth from the fuel station.
Another product known as the Flo n' go Superflo® also attempts to solve the problem of trying to fill a tank from a hand-held fuel tank. This device is a fuel siphon that pumps gas with an at-the-handle pump control. It has a flow rate of approximately 1 gallon per minute in siphon mode. The Superflo® comprises a siphon/pump and a hose and optionally a fuel can. This product, however, is slow and time consuming when filling the tanks of personal watercraft and small boats.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,464,735 discloses a funnel stand that includes a housing supporting an internal funnel connected to a fuel hose that can be folded or rolled up for storage inside the housing and extended through a hose opening for placement in a fuel tank opening. In addition, the funnel stand may include a lid covering the funnel opening, a door covering the hose opening, and handles to facilitate carrying the device by hand. The funnel stand is designed to be suitable for delivering fuel from a hand-held fuel can into the fuel tanks on small watercraft, such as small boats and personal watercraft.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,048,020 discloses a connector on-board the vehicle, connected to the fuel tank via a pouring conduit and provided with a closure valve, and a filling element adapted to be connected to this connector. The filling element is provided with at least one member for detecting the abutment of the filling element on a fixed part of the connector, this member being adapted to control the displacement of a hook for locking the aforementioned element on the connector, between a first position where the hook is disengaged with respect to the connector and a second position where the hook is in engagement on the connector.
As a result, there is a need for an easier, more convenient and more cost effective way to load fuel onto watercraft while they are in the water. There is a further need for a better way to load fuel purchased at a land-based gas station onto watercraft while they are in the water, particularly while they are floating at a private dock. It would also be beneficial for the device to be universal for many different locations, unobtrusive, attractive, practical, light weight, and generally safe, easy and convenient to use.
This background information is provided to reveal information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the present invention. No admission is necessarily intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art against the present invention.